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"Those are decisions you have to make sometimes, if not it affects your future," Cabrera told ESPN Deportes. "If not, it could hurt your career, and that's what I based my decision on. I consulted with the team and made this decision personally so I could keep playing with the team. I tried to [play hurt] to take advantage of the chance we had in the playoffs, because with so many good teams you never know when a chance like this will come along. It took me eight or nine years to get back in the playoffs and I wanted to be back there and help the team win."

Cabrera also dealt with an abdominal injury during the summer. He hurt his groin late in the season after the abdominal injury had healed.

The injuries did little to affect Cabrera's swing. The 2012 AL Triple Crown winner led the majors in average, OBP and slugging (.348/.442/.636 in 652 plate appearances). He slugged 44 home runs and drove in 137 runs; both totals were second in MLB to Chris Davis of the Baltimore Orioles.

But during Detroit's 11-game playoff run, he was limited to just nine singles, two home runs and seven RBIs.